A Fairy's Soul
by Chi Hisakata
Summary: After Soul and Black Star get in trouble AGAIN, Stein sends the team on a remedial lesson in the land of Fiore where they run into the renown guild called Fairy Tail. The DWMA's strongest team meets Fairy Tail's. Who will fall in love? Who will start the fights? (I'm betting on Natsu and Black Star) Action packed and hilarious, this'll be a memorable encounter.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Just a heads up, I'm basing terms off of the anime series for both Fairy Tail and Soul Eater. I'll be using terms from both dubbed and subbed versions. **

Maka Albarn sat on the ground, twirling one of her pigtails around her finger. She couldn't help but feel anxious about what kind of punishment Soul and Black Star would receive this time. Staring at the wall across the hallway, she unconsciously counted the minutes which seemed to drag on forever. Finally, the door to the Death Room slid open and her Weapon partner, Soul Eater stepped out along with their friend, the Dark Assassin, Black Star.

"Oh, hey, Maka," Black Star greeted her with a wave while her partner sulked behind him. "What're you doing sitting out here?"

"What do you think I'm doing? I was waiting for you two. So, how long do you have detention for this time?" asked the scythe Technician, getting to her feet.

Black Star only laughed. "Detention? I'm way too big a man for detention!"

_That sure didn't stop Stein from giving you detention the last fifty times you guys blew up a part of the school, _Maka thought to herself.

"It's something way cooler than detention," Soul finally said, still sulking.

"What is it, then?"

"Well, we made a deal with Stein. If we participated in one of his experiments, he'd let us off the hook this time," grinned Black Star. "Oh, and our partners are gonna be in it too. I'm sure Tsubaki won't have a problem."

"You can go ask her yourself. She's wallowing in sorrow on the roof," Maka told him, grimacing.

Once the assassin had disappeared up the stairwell, she turned to her Weapon partner, shaking her head. "How many times do I have to tell you not to get involved in stupid fights, Soul? It's not cool."

Soul sighed. "I'm sorry. It's cool if you don't want to be in the experiment. I'll accept detention."

His partner just gave him a disappointed look before shrugging. "Hey, you've saved my life time and time again. I at least owe you this much. But I've got to ask you, do you have a death wish, starting a fight with a Shinigami again after getting your butt kicked last time?"

He grinned, putting his hands behind his head as they walked back to class. "Yeah, maybe. I think we'd be better off if Kid had actually killed me."

Tsubaki sat on the roof of the DWMA looking out over Death City.

_Oh, Black Star. Why do you insist on always getting in trouble? _

Just as she was about to head back to class, the door burst open and her partner made his usual grand entrance.

"There's no need to be gloomy for Black Star is here. The sun has come out from behind the clouds!" the boy grinned, giving his partner a thumbs-up.

Tsubaki just gazed at him for a second before looking back over the city.

"C'mon, Tsubaki. Don't tell me you're mad," he said, sitting down next to her. "I didn't even get detention this time!"

"Oh? Is Stein giving us a remedial lesson?" she asked. At the DWMA, if your partner screwed up or caused trouble, you were usually dragged into the punishment, especially if it was a remedial lesson.

Soul and Black Star got in way too much trouble to get remedial lessons every time, so they just got detention.

"Nah. But we have to be in an experiment of his," Black Star replied.

"Oh... Wait, what?" demanded Tsubaki. "You're going to let him dissect us?"

Black Star just laughed. "No, it's not like that. I think he's using us to test some device he's been working on or something."

Tsubaki sighed in relief as she got up. "Okay. Well, next time you fight Kid, you should at least take me with you. You might have a better chance fighting with a weapon you can hold, you know?"

He looked at her with big eyes. For a second, the girl thought he might start crying.

"You got it, Tsubaki," he grinned. "Next time, we'll definitely beat Kid. I can't wait."

"Yep," smiled the Weapon. "Let's head back to class before Stein actually decides to give us both detention."

...

Later on that day, Tsubaki, Black Star, Soul Eater and Maka headed down to Professor Stein's lab on the other side of the city. The man was a more than a little insane and had a screw sticking out of the side of his head, but he was a scientific genius, not to mention the school's best Technician, besides Lord Death himself.

Maka was glaring irritably at Black Star and Kid who were bickering about nothing, as usual. Black Star was always set on outdoing the reaper at anything and everything, and Kid was always fretting about how loud, obnoxious, and asymmetrical the assassin was about anything and everything. In conclusion, it was a miracle they were even friends.

"I actually thought you'd pick detention over risking becoming asymmetrical in one of Stein's experiments," said Maka, interrupting the two's argument.

"Well, I had nothing better to do, and detention definitely sounds boring," mused Kid, adjusting his collar as they passed by a reflective window. "Besides, how can I let my team do something risky without me?"

_He's definitely grown since we first met, _thought Maka as they arrived at Stein's place.

"Here's goes nothing," muttered Soul, ringing the doorbell.

Miss Marie, one of the Death Scythes, and Professor Stein's current partner, opened the door and greeted them all with a smile. "Good afternoon, everyone. How're you all doing?"

They all mumbled halfhearted answers as they entered the lab. Miss Marie directed them back to where Professor Stein was waiting and they all gaped in awe at the machine that towered in front of them. It was cylinder-shaped, big enough to fit all seven of the students with room to spare and it reached all the way up to the ceiling.

"It's a Matter Teleportation Device. MTD for short," said Stein, his glasses ominously reflecting the light. "And you're all going to test it out for me."

"That's it? That's our punishment?" asked Kid, still gawking at the machine.

Liz elbowed him lightly. "Don't convince him to give us more!"

"I won't. This is all I need from you and then you're off the hook and free to go," the professor assured them with a wide grin as he lit a cigarette.

"Cool. The faster we get this over with, the faster we get home," said Soul, pulling open the door of the MTD. "I'm hungry."

"When are you _not_ hungry?" grumbled his Technician, stepping in after him.

"When I'm sleeping," he replied as everyone else got in and Stein came to stand in the doorway.

"This will be considered a remedial lesson. You'll have to adapt to changes and different obstacles whileyou're in Fiore. Be prepared." He closed the door and the seven were standing in pitch darkness until Stein's voice came on through a speaker. "Oh, and it'll be a while until I'll be able to collect enough souls to power this back up and bring you all back. Until then, you're excused from classes."

With that, the seven unfortunate, and slightly panicking students were enveloped in whiteness and sent away from Death City.

* * *

"Could you guys at least give me a heads up before you break into my house uninvited?" demanded Lucy Heartfilia, boiling with anger.

It shouldn't have been a surprise to see Natsu Dragneil and his blue flying cat, Happy, sitting on her bed when she got out of the shower. For some reason, they never ceased to drop by her house almost everyday ever since she first moved in.

"I'm starving," groaned Natsu, ignoring Lucy's question. "Do you have any food?"

"When are you _not_ hungry?" she sighed, pulling on some clothes and walking to the kitchen to get her two friends some food.

"Do you have any fish, Lucy?" asked Happy, hovering next to her head as she opened the fridge.

"Sure. Here," she grumbled, giving him one of the fish she was saving to make a stew with later. "Natsu, what do you want?"

"Anything's fine," replied the pink-haired dragon slayer.

She tossed him a bag of chips and sat down next to him on her bed.

"Thanks a ton," grinned Natsu, eating up.

"Is something wrong?" Happy questioned. "You seem down."

"It's nothing. I just feel like something strange is happening... Like there's some sort of portal opening up," murmured the Celestial Wizard as she played with her hair. "But I can't put my finger on it..."

"It's probably Loke going to see one of his girlfriends again," said Gray Fullbuster, climbing through the window, shirtless.

"If you're gonna break into my house, too, at least have the decency to wear some clothes while you're at it," Lucy pointed out.

The boy looked down and seemed surprise to see that he was only in his underwear. "Sorry. I don't really do it on purpose sometimes."

"So other times you strip on purpose?" growled Natsu, still stuffing his mouth with chips.

"You got a problem, pyro?" demanded the Ice Wizard.

"Yeah. I got a problem with your face, stripper," Natsu retorted.

"Is it just me, or are they running out of good insults?" Lucy asked Happy.

"Their insults were never very good to begin with," the cat replied, biting into his fish.

A yellow glow silenced the room as one of Lucy's celestial spirits, and a fellow member of Fairy Tail, Loke, appeared through a worldly gate.

"Hey, guys," he smiled charmingly as he stepped out of the Celestial World.

"Hey, Loke! Long time no see," grinned Natsu, high-fiving his friend.

"Good to see you too, bro, but I'm not here for a casual visit," he added. "Lucy, I'm sure you felt it."

"Yeah. But I don't know exactly what it was," she confessed.

"What're you guys talking about?" Natsu asked, giving them both a curious look.

"A Gate was opened. It wasn't anyone from the Celestial World, though," said Lucy.

"I know where it is," Loke added. "You think we should go check it out?"

"Yeah. Let's go," agreed Lucy. "You guys coming?"

Gray was already snoring on her bed and Happy claimed to be too stuffed to move. Natsu happily agreed though.

Loke led the way into Southgate park. Under the big tree, there lay a group of teenagers who looked worse for wear.

"Hey... Maka, you mind getting off me?" grunted a white haired boy.

"Sorry," groaned the girl with blonde hair and green eyes as she sat up.. "Oh, I feel sick..."

"Ow... Liz, Patty, next time, transform so it doesn't hurt so much when you land on me," said a boy with black hair with white stripes on one half of his head.

"Sorry, Kid-kun," laughed a girl with short blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes as she hopped to her feet.

"Give me a hand, would you, Patty?" asked the other girl who had landed on top of the boy.

"You got it, sis," smiled Patty as she pulled the girl who must have been Liz to her feet.

A few feet away, a boy with spiky blue hair and a star tattooed on his arm lay unconscious while a girl with long black hair was worriedly watching over him.

"You think they get motion sickness too?" asked Natsu, getting everyone's attention unintentionally.

For a few seconds, the three Fairy Tail members and the six DWMA students (Black Star is still out cold) stared at each other before each got ready to fight.

"Alright, start explaining," said Natsu, his hands lighting on fire. "Who are you and how'd you get here?"

"Calm down, Natsu," said Lucy, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe we should listen to what they have to say before you start throwing flaming punches," added Loke, eyeing Maka's group wearily.

Kid glanced at Maka with a raised eyebrow as if saying, _"Should I start shooting or...?"_

Maka shook her head and turned to the three wizards. "We're students from the DWMA. We were teleported here from some sort of machine. You're using magic, aren't you? Are you Witches?"

The three gawked at her, dumbfounded.

"DWM...what?" asked Natsu.

"We prefer the term Wizards," said Lucy. "And Loke's a Celestial Spirit."

The scythe Technician blinked at her cluelessly.

"Where are you guys from?" asked Loki, adjusting his glasses.

"Nevada," Kid answered. "Though, I'd like to know where we are."

"You're in the town of Magnolia," said Lucy. "Wait, so you're telling me you have no idea where you are or how to get back to...Nevada?"

They all nodded yes and Natsu and Lucy glanced at each other before Natsu said, "Well, how about you come to our guild and we can ask Master if he knows anything."

"By the way, I'm Lucy, and these two are Natsu and Loki," Lucy introduced, remembering her manners.

"I guess we don't have much of a choice," mused Maka, glancing at her Weapon.

Soul nodded and went over to pull Black Star off the ground.

They all headed back to the Fairy Tail guild hall. Lucy decided to find our a little bit more about these strangers.

"Well, I suppose we would relate most to what you call Holder type wizards. Technicians like me, Maka, and Black Star rely on our Weapons, Liz, Patty, Soul, and Tsubaki to help us fight," Kid explained as he walked alongside Lucy.

"Weapons?" she questioned. "Can they use magic or something?"

"Actually, the term Weapon is quite literal when it comes to our partners. They're magic Weapons created by witches. They're humans who are able to turn into forms of weaponry. For instance, Patty, transform..."

"Kk," cheered Patty, transforming into a pistol.

"Patty here can turn into a gun identical to her sister," said Kid, twirling Patty between his fingers before tossing her into the air and having her transform back into human form. "And Soul can turn into a scythe."

Lucy gaped in amazement as Soul grunted, adjusting Black Star's weight over his shoulders.

"Damn, what do you feed this guy, Tsubaki?" asked Soul, trying to drag Black Star who still hadn't woken up.

"Well, considering how much he works out, he's hungry most of the time," said the assassin's weapon.

"So this DWMA you mentioned, what does it stand for?" asked Lucy.

"Death Weapon Meister Academy," replied Maka. "Run by Lord Death."

"Wait, as in the Shinigami himself?" asked Natsu. "Dude, that rocks! I bet he's a scary headmaster."

"He's actually really nice. And he's Kid's father," said Maka.

"What?! You're a Shinigami too? No way!" exclaimed the dragon slayer Mage in awe, stopping in his tracks.

"It's the truth," shrugged Kid. "Why'd you stop?"

Natsu was giving him an intense glare as Kid trailed to a stop and turned to face him, raising an eyebrow.

Before Natsu could answer, he got knocked upside the head by a girl with scarlet hair dressed in upper body armor along with a navy blue skirt.

"Oh, hey, Erza," said Lucy, waving at her.

"What's going on here? Who are they?" asked Erza.

"They're from out of town," Lucy answered quickly. "It's a long story, but they need to see the Master as soon as possible."

"Is he injured?" Etza gestured at Black Star.

"Nah, he's just sleeping," chuckled Soul.

"What? You're carrying him because he's napping?" asked Loki incredulously.

"Trust me, it'd be a lot louder if he were awake. It's worth carrying the guy for a little peace and quiet," said Maka.

"Speak for yourself, Maka. I'm dying here," complained Soul.

"Well, Master's still at the guild hall so we should hurry there if you want to catch him," said Erza.

"Hey, you guys!"

They all turned to see Gray sliding on the frozen river toward them, still shirtless.

"Put some clothes on, Gray," Erza sighed.

"Yes, ma'am," he said, joining the group hiking through Magnolia in the middle of the night.

"We didn't want to wake you up," Lucy told him. "So we left to go see what was up without you. We found Maka's group in the park."

"Hey, welcome to Magnolia," grinned Gray.

"Is it that hot?" asked Patty, wondering why the boy was only in shorts.

"It's just a habit of his," said Erza, shaking her head as she turned and walked toward the guild hall.  
Shrugging, everyone followed her.

They arrived in front of the guild hall, which didn't especially impress the DWMA students, but they had to admit, it was pretty big.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail," grinned Natsu, pushing the door open.


	2. Chapter 2

The old Master of the guild sat on the counter, drinking from a large keg of wine.

"Gramps, keep drinking like that and Kana just might have competition," said Natsu as they all entered the guild hall.

"Oh, hello. What are you children doing here so late?" asked the old man, squinting at them in the dim light.

"We came upon a group of travelers so we brought them here. They claim to have been teleported here," Erza explained. "We were wondering if you knew how to get them back to..."

"Nevada," Maka finished for her. "Back to the DWMA."

"The DWMA, you say?" Master repeated, scratching his chin. "I can't say I've seen it myself, but isn't that the school run by the Shinigami, Lord Death himself?"

"Yes, sir," said Maka, her hope rising. Maybe they wouldn't be stuck here like Stein had said.

"Well, I'm a afraid I don't know how to return you there with my own power," sighed the Master, taking another swig of wine. "However, maybe Gildarts will. He's on a job right now, though."

"A job?" exclaimed Natsu. "So they have to wait another three years?"

Master Makurov chuckled. "No. He just needed booze money. He'll be back tomorrow. Until then, you kids are welcome to spend the night. There are a few guest rooms open, but you'll have to share. Erza, you mind showing them?"

"Of course," said the red haired girl, heading up the stairs.

"You gotta be kidding me," mumbled Soul as he pulled Black Star up the stairs.

"Here," said Erza, pushing open two doors. "Make yourselves comfortable."

"Thanks," smiled Maka.

The girls took one room and the boys took the one next door. They weren't really tired, but they figured they should get as much sleep as they could while they had the chance because they didn't know what awaited them in this strange place.

...

Maka woke to a crash from downstairs.

"Dammit, Soul. You're gonna get it, now..." she mumbled, still half asleep.

Looking around, she was momentarily alarmed that she wasn't in her room, but the memory of being teleported to a strange land called Fiore and being welcomed into the Fairy Tail guild hall came flooding back to her.

"What was that crash?" asked Liz, drowsily.

"YAHOO! Bring it on! I'm gonna be the biggest star and you can't stop me, even if you breathe fire!"

Maka grimaced. No doubt about it. That was Black Star.

"Oh. I almost forgot he came along," grumbled Liz as she got out of bed and went to the door, pulling it open in time to see Natsu flying through the air and hitting a wall.

"Same old Black Star. He starts a fight first thing in the morning," sighed Maka.

"Hey, look. They got us a change of clothes," said Liz, noticing the outfits on hangers hooked to the doorknob.

The girls all got changed and looked each other over before turning to the mirror.

"Not really my style, but I can deal," smiled Liz, turning her body so she could see all the angles.

"It's a little revealing," Maka commented, looking at her exposed navel and low neckline.

There was a knock on the door and Lucy came in looking bright and cheerful.

"Good morning," she smiled. "Sorry about the clothes. They're from the Celestial World so they might not be what you're used to."

It's not the fact that they're from a different world, Maka thought, shifting uncomfortably.

"I love them," squealed Patty happily.

"I'm glad you do," said Lucy. "The boys are already downstairs. Mira's making breakfast."

"Sorry about whatever Black Star broke," Tsubaki apologized. Out of the four girls, she looked the best in her new clothes, her hair hanging in a braid down her back and her figure was perfectly defined by the new clothing.

"It's okay. Fairy Tail's kind of known for tearing stuff down. If anything, he's fitting right in," Lucy giggled.

The four academy students glanced at each other wearily. If Black Star fit in, what kind of crazy place was this?

They followed Lucy downstairs to the main part of the guild hall. A bunch of people were gathered around a bulletin board which resembled the Assignment board at the DWMA. There were tables scattered all around the hall and Mages were sitting in groups, socializing and having fun.

"Guys, meet Levy, one of the smartest people I know," said Lucy, gesturing to a pixie-like girl with blue hair pulled back by an orange headband that complimented her dress. She was surrounded by books of various scriptures and she paused her writing to look up at her name.

"Nice to meet you," said Maka.

"You too," grinned Levvy. "I've read a lot about the DWMA but I never thought it actually existed."

"I've never heard of Fiore," Maka admitted. "But I've seen that sort of writing before."

"Really? Do you think you could help me crack this spell? I've been working on it since last night," Levvy asked hopefully.

"I don't know a lot about spells."

"It's actually just scrambled up words mixed with different scriptures and as soon as you're able to translate it, it's really easy to counter," the girl explained excitedly.

"Oh, in that case, I'd be glad to help," smiled the scythe technician.

"It's best if we leave them to it," said Lucy to the other girls.

"Wow, your Ice Make magic is flawless," said Kid, his eyes sparkling as he gazed in awe at the arc Gray had just created with his magic.

"Thanks," Gray grinned.

"Gray, your clothes," Lucy said as they approached him.

"Oh, good morning," said Kid, smiling at the girls.

Lucy simply waved, the slightest hint of pink rising to her cheeks.

Tsubaki had excused herself to go help Mira Jane make breakfast and Patty had wandered off somewhere.

"Do you always take off your clothes?" Liz asked Gray.

"Yeah. I do it unconsciously now," he replied, laughing sheepishly.

"Well, Kid has an equally annoying habit. He's a perfectionist to the max," said Liz, sitting down next to the Ice Mage.

"Is it true you guys are from a school run by Lord Death?" asked a girl with blue hair, approaching their table.

"Liz, this is Juvia," Gray introduced her. "She specializes in water magic."

"Nice to meet you. And, yeah, actually. We got sent here by our crazy professor through some teleporting device," Liz replied, admiring one of Gray's Ice-Make sculptures.

"I see," mused Juvia. "Are you waiting for Gildarts?"

"We think he might be able to help them get home," said Lucy as she put some drinks down on the table for everyone.

"Well, best of luck," smiled Juvia.

Suddenly, the room went dark and a spotlight appeared on the stage. A man with piercings on his eyebrows and down the sides of his nose sat onstage with a guitar.

"Oh, not this again," groaned Lucy, a sour look on her face.

"I'd like to dedicate this song to the newcomers of our guild," said the man, strumming his guitar.

"Um, hold on a second!" called Levy, running up to the stage. "Since we're apparently having a welcoming event, we should let one of them perform something. Please?" The last word came out pleadingly.

"I'll give it a shot," said a husky voice. Soul Eater stepped onto the stage. "Do you guys have a piano?"

"Sure. But no one here can play so we haven't used it in a while," said Levy, snapping her fingers.

The curtains withdrew to reveal a glossy grand piano.

"This is so cool," grinned Soul Eater, taking a seat on the bench.

"Alright, let's go Gajeel. You can have your turn later," said Levy, relieved, as she dragged the man offstage.

"Wow, Soul's actually gonna play," said Liz. "I haven't heard him in forever."

"This is called Selenic Soul," the pianist said as he started playing a rather sad melody that silenced the room.

By the time he finished, almost everyone was in tears.

"That was so manly," sobbed Elfman, tears streaming down his face.

"Wow, that rocked," said Levy as Soul joined her and Maka at their table.

"Thanks," the scythe said with a sheepish smile.

"What's this? Soul Eater's blushing?" giggled Maka.

"The lighting in here must be bad," grumbled Soul as he twirled a knife between his fingers. "Or maybe you need to ask Ox where he got his glasses."

His partner grimaced. "Hey, Levy, can I borrow one of these books for a sec?"

"Sure, what for, though?"

"This." Maka raised the book above Soul's head and hit him about as hard as she could.

"Ow. Man, could you get out of that habit, Maka?" groaned Soul, rubbing his throbbing skull as Levy laughed daintily.

"So when is Mr. Gildarts coming back?" asked Maka.

"I haven't heard the title Mister in a while," said a voice behind her. "You can just call me Gildarts."

Maka spun around in her seat to see a man wearing a brown cloak and high boots. He looked like he'd just had the battle of his life.

"HEY GILDARTS" yelled Natsu's voice as he dived at the man from the second floor.

Erza knocked him out of the air before he could reach him. "Natsu, now isn't the time to challenge him to a fight. We need to see if he knows a spell to get Maka and her friends home."

Natsu nodded weakly as he got to his feet. "Well, guess I'll have to wait to kick your butt."

"What's the deal about a spell and getting someone home?" asked Gildarts as Mira handed him a beer from the counter.

Maka proceeded to explain their situation to him, and the man listened to every word carefully, his demeanor suddenly serious. Unfortunately, he didn't have the response they'd hoped for.

"I'm sorry, kids, but I'm afraid I don't know very much about teleportation magic," Gildarts told them. "From what you told me, your professor's working on getting you back there, right? So in the meantime, how about you ask the Master if you can be temporary members of the guild?"

"Members of the guild?" Kid repeated, leaning against the counter.

"Yeah. You know, take jobs, rent a place," the man shrugged.

"I think that's a great idea," said the Master, coming down the stairs. "You're welcome to join. We'd be glad to have you."

"What do you think?" Kid asked Maka.

"It's a pretty cool offer," Soul added.

The team's leader nodded. "We're sorry to bother you."

"It's no bother at all," smiled Mira as something like a stamp pad appeared in her hand.

She put the Fairy Tail emblem on each of the seven DWMA students and explained the rules of the guild to them. There weren't as many guidelines as Maka had expected, but everyone else seemed fine with it.

"Hey! Lucy, Erza, I got a job for us!" said Natsu, waving a piece of paper in the air.

"I got a better one," Gray snapped, holding up his own paper. "And it pays higher."

"I kinda need the money, so I think I'm going with Gray's," said Lucy.

"What? Come on, man," Natsu whined. "We're a team! I had her first, Gray, you bastard."

"Natsu's does look more challenging," mused Erza, standing in between the two boys to stop them from lunging at each other's throats. "I'm always up for a challenge."

"An easy job with a higher reward sounds way better," Lucy pointed out. "Besides, I think you can handle one job without me, can't you?"

"Lucy, don't do this," said Happy. "Pleeeeaaase."

Erza sighed and cleared her throat. "Alright, gang. I have a plan. Since we've got new guild members who have never been on any jobs before, we can split up and take both jobs. Natsu and I will take Kid, Liz, Patty, Black Star, and Tsubaki with us on the job Natsu found and Gray and Lucy, you can take Maka and Soul Eater with you on the job Gray found. Sound fair?"

"How did we get dragged into this?" asked Maka, wearily.

"I'd go along with it," laughed Levy. "There's no stopping Erza once she's on a roll."

"Guess we're teaming up for now, huh?" Black Star grinned, high-fiving Natsu.

"Yeah. We can finish our fight when we get back," replied the Fire Wizard.

"I suppose some experience would be nice before we start working solo," shrugged Kid as he followed Erza out the door.

"Hey, popsicle, last one back to the guild hall loses!" shouted Natsu as he raced out the door with Black Star on his heels.

"I won't be outshone, dragon slayer," Black Star laughed as he raced Natsu to the train station.

"If only he was around for the 24 hour endurance run," Levy said to Soul.

"He's an idiot, but when it comes to working out, the guy's unbeatable," he shrugged.

"Hey, Soul, we're leaving," called Maka from the hall's entrance.

"Coming! See you around, Levy," he added before joining his team as the exited the guild hall.

She smiled and waved before turning to her own team (known as Shadow Gear), shaking her head. "Would you two stop sulking?"

"I can't believe Levy's into that guy," moaned Droy, almost in tears. "Damn."

"I am not into him," Levy denied, her face turning bright pink. "We should take a job, too. Let's get going."

"Yes, Levy," both boys said in unison as they followed her to the Request Board.

"Those two are so lame," grumbled Gajeel as the three walked pass him.


	3. Chapter 3

"So what exactly do we have to do on this job?" asked Soul as the four of them reached the train station.

"The flier says we have to capture a group of escaped prisoners," replied Gray as they got their tickets to ride a few towns over. "They're supposed to be hiding out in the woods near this town."

"If they're regular inmates, why hire a group of wizards to catch them?" Maka questioned.

"Well, sometimes, they hire Wizards as bodyguards so people figure they should fight magic with magic," replied Lucy. "And other times, they're just really badass criminals."

She sighed happily as they boarded the train. "This'll be the first time in a while that I can enjoy a train ride without having to worry about Natsu's motion sickness," she breathed, a huge smile on her face as she sat down across from Gray.

"Man, that is music to my ears," grinned Gray, leaning back im his seat.

Soul took the seat next to her, which left Maka to sit by Gray. She inadvertently realized that this was the first time she'd seen Gray fully dressed. She couldn't stop the heat from rising to her cheeks...

"Look who's blushing now," Soul teased her with a goofy grin.

She quickly turned away so Gray wouldn't see. "I'm not. It's just a bit chilly in here."

A few seconds later, she felt a coat being draped over her shoulders. Glancing over, she saw that Gray had given her his jacket.

"You didn't have to," she said, moving to give it back. "It's cold in here. I'd feel awful if you got sick."

"Don't worry about it, okay?" he smiled, placing his hand over hers to stop her from taking it off. "I'm always walking around without clothes. The cold stopped bothering me a long time ago."

"Much to everyone's displeasure," Lucy reminded him. "Except maybe Juvia's."

"Don't say her name! She might show up if you do," he sighed.

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask. What do they teach at the DWMA? Since it's a school run by Lord Death, I doubt you have the average curriculum," Lucy pointed out.

"We learn the basics of the average curriculum, but the main goal to graduate is to turn your weapon into a Death Scythe. In order to do that, we have to collect ninety-nine Kishin eggs and one Witch's soul."

"What's a Kishin?" asked Gray.

"It's a soul that's turned evil," replied Soul. "They've strayed from the path of humanity and started hunting and eating human souls. A Kishin is complete and utter madness. The DWMA was created to prevent another Kishin from ever being born again."

"Wait, did you say they eat human souls?" Lucy questioned.

"Yes. You told me Natsu eats fire in order to boost his strength and magical power, right? Well, magic Weapons kind of run on the same idea. To increase their power and strength they devour souls. But eating human souls is strictly forbidden," Maka added.

"Because anyone who starts eating human souls becomes a Kishin egg," Soul finished.

After a few seconds of silence, Lucy finally spoke up. "It's hard to believe those things exist," she said in a soft voice.

Silence overtook them the rest of the way there. Once off the train, they headed into the woods to locate their targets.

They didn't have to go very far before the sound of rustling bushes made the group stop in their tracks.

"Soul," warned Maka.

"On it," her partner replied, transforming into a scythe.

A group of Wizards stepped out of the trees, surrounding the four Fairy Tail members. They were also guild members: Members of a dark guild.

"Why am I not surprised to see a couple of guild Wizards here to save the day?" chuckled one of their opponents.

"We're not just from any guild, pal," snapped Gray. "We're Fairy Tail. Just give up the prisoners you're guarding and we won't hurt you."

"Slim chance, boy," the man replied. "We ain't goin' back to prison without a fight."

"Alright. We won't hold back then," said Gray, taking off his clothes. "Ice-Make lance!"

And with that, the battle began. Unfortunately for Maka, she was being ganged up on since she wasn't a Wizard.

"Don't think I'll be an easy target just because I can't use magic," she said, leaping into the air and twirling the scythe in her hands.

"Avoid using the blade," said Soul. "We have to take them back alive."

"Okay," replied the Technician, knocking out her third opponent. "But seeing how dark their souls are, it's hard not to grab you some dinner."

"Don't tempt me," growled Soul.

"These guys sure are weaker than the Witches we've faced," commented Maka as she landed on her feet next to Gray.

The whole lot of them had been either been knocked out or had surrendered.

"You guys hardly need training," said Gray, giving them a smile.

"I wonder how the other team is doing," mused Lucy, looking up at the starry sky.

...

"So we're supposed to fight giant monkeys?" asked Black Star, dumbfounded.

"Not that different from hunting Kishin eggs," replied Kid, shooting at the yetis midair.

"Well, at least it's not a boring job," replied the assassin, "Tsubaki, you can sit this one out. Take a breather." He put down his weapon and went head to head with one of them, throwing it to the ground and knocking it out.

A few feet away, Natsu was using his fire magic to keep the rest of them at bay while Erza went to rescue the employer's daughter.

"We just want the girl back, pal!" he cried as he pummeled the yeti with flaming fists. "You guys can save yourself a world of hurt."

The group of yetis just laughed and Kid sighed before landing his skateboard.

"Natsu, you might want to get back," he warned. "You don't want to be caught in the blast."

The dragon slayer gave him a questioning look before leaping onto a ledge. "Are you gonna take 'em all out in one go?" he asked.

"That's the goal," the Shinigami replied. "Liz, Patty. Soul Resonance."

The trio synced their Souls' wavelengths and the Thompson sisters loaded up for Death Cannon mode.

"Why do you keep trying to outshine me?" demanded Black Star angrily as he and Tsubaki swung up on a nearby tree branch to avoid the blast.

"I'm only trying to get the job done quickly," Kid answered coolly as they reached their maximum resonance.

"Firing!" announced Patty a millisecond before the two arm cannons fired a large beam simultaneously, knocking out the whole pack of yetis in one blast.

"I can't believe he was a bigger star than me," complained Black Star as he jumped from the tree.

"Good job beating that monkey up, though," Tsubaki smiled, landing lightly next to him in the snow.

"That was so cool!" exclaimed Natsu as Erza appeared at the cave's entrance, half carrying a girl who the others assumed was their employer's daughter.

"I wonder what she was doing all the way up here," said Liz who was now back in her human form.

"I can't seem to wake her up. We should get her back before she gets hypothermia," Erza announced,

"Yeah. And we gotta beat Gray's team back to the guild hall," chided Natsu. The cold didn't seem to be bothering him at all.

They returned the girl safely home and after having some tea, the group excused themselves to return to the guild hall.

"Do you have any idea as to why she would have gone up there by herself?" Erza asked the girl's father, Mr. Takahashi.

"Well, she was acting a bit strange, and one night she just up and left," he replied in a worried tone.

"It seems our mission isn't quite done yet," Kid stated, setting down his teacup.

"Do you have any enemies who might be targeting you?" Erza questioned.

"No, miss. Not that I know of," the nobleman answered. "We keep to ourselves most of the time."

"Well, please contact us once she wakes up," said Erza. "We must be heading back now. Thank you for your hospitality."

"You're really going to help them find out what happeNed with her?" asked Happy as the made their way to the train station.

"Of course. Why wouldn't we?"

"Well, technically our only job was to bring her back," replied the cat.

"It might have been the only job we were paid for, but as members of the Fairy Tail guild, it's our duty to see this through until the end," stated Erza.

"I'll be heading back my own way," Kid announced as they were about to board the train. "There's some thing I'd like to look into briefly. I'll see you when you get back to the guild hall. Liz, Patty, are you two coming?"

"Yeah, sure," grumbled Liz, transforming into a pistol.

"We're on it, boss," giggled Patty, following in suit.

"There is no way you're going to outshine me again, Kid!" exclaimed Black Star. "I'm gonna beat you back there, just watch!"

"How're you going to do that? The only way back is the train and that'll take hours," Liz pointed out.

"That's where you're wrong," grinned Black Star. "Tsubaki, you coming?"

"Of course," smiled the Weapon. "Ready when you are."

"Alright then. Smoke bomb mode activate!"

Tsubaki raised an eyebrow. "Is that really necessary?"

"Being the big star I am, I have to make a grand exit," the boy boasted.

Tsubaki shrugged and did what her technician asked, taking off into the woods after Black Star before the smoke cleared.

"They must be crazy. Magnolia is over ten miles away," gawked Erza.

"it sure seems like a better option than taking the train," groaned Natsu. "Just looking at it makes me sick."

"Let's go," chuckled Erza, dragging him on board. "Those DWMA students sure are something, though..."


	4. Chapter 4

Death the Kid stopped midair, hovering over the forest. He could have sworn ensed a Witch's soul.

"Kid, there's a large heat source coming up behind you!" Patty warned.

Instinctively, the Shinigami maneuvered his skateboard to the left, narrowly avoiding the blast before landing safely in a clearing.

"Was that...lightning?" asked Kid, looking up at the clear blue sky. "Do you two sense them?"

"Yeah, five of them," replied Liz in a weary voice. "They've got us surrounded."

"Show yourselves," said Kid. "I don't have time to play hide and seek."

"come out so we can shoot your heads in!" Patty giggled.

A group of five wizards stepped out from the trees. Their souls resembled those of Witches, however. Kid was sure of it.

"Who are you?" Kid demanded. "And why were you following Erza and the rest of us?"

"Simple," replied a girl with flowing link hair. She was dressed in white and green, resembling a flower. "Beautiful revenge."

"We are the Garou Phantoms. Fairy Tail cost us our jobs at the palace," the other girl stated. She had long black hair that went pass her waist. Her gaze was sinister and full of hate.

"I don't remember causing you people any trouble. We just recently joined Fairy Tail so we don't know about a lot of past feuds," said Kid.

"Kid, I don't think they care," said Liz. "Maybe they're against anyone and everyone from Fairy Tail."

"Your talking pistol is absolutely right-tai!" exclaimed one of the Garou Phantoms. The man looked the least threatening out of the five, but Kid could tell from how powerful his soul was that his looks were deceiving, to say the least.

"Well, I have more than one good reason to take you out," mused Kid. "But That's only two... I need at least one more to make the numbe at least horizontally symmetrical..."

"Kid!" cried Liz. "This is no time to worry about symmetry!"

"If you won't attack, then we will. Card magic: Green!" announced the girl with black hair.

"Dammit. Poison," Kid muttered as a cloud of green enveloped him. _I can handle it, but Liz and Patty aren't immune like I am, _

"Here, Liz, take my board and get to somewhere out of range of the poison," he ordered.

"We're your weapons," Liz protested, covering her mouth and nose to avoid breathing any of it in as she returned to human form. "We'll back you up."

"I'm a shinigami. I can take care of myself. Now, get out of here!"

Liz reluctantly nodded and got on Kid's board. "Be careful," she said as she put her sister's Weapon form in her belt and lifted off into the air, above the cloud of poison.

"Don't worry, big sis," chimed Patty from Liz's waist. "He's annoying, but he's pretty strong even without us."

"Yeah, I know that," her big sister replied, but she couldn't shake the bad feeling creeping through her stomach.

"You Fairies won't get away that easily," laughed a tinkling voice before a plant sprouted into the air, causing Liz to lose her balance and the board to lose altitude. The unfortunate Thompson sisters found themselves crashing down a tree a few seconds later, hitting the ground with a thud.

"Patty, are uou alright?" winced Liz, unsteadily getting to her feet.

"Yep, I'm fine," answered Patty, still tucked under Liz's belt. "Sis, watch out!"

Liz dove out of the way as what appeared to be seeds bombarded the tree behind her, exploding on impact.

"What's your deal?" Liz demanded, waving away the smoke. It was the pink haired flower girl.

The girl only smiled. "Your even prettier up close," she drawled, striding toward the Thompson sisters.

"Be careful, sis," Patty warned as the girl stopped a few feet away.

"My name is Cosmos of the Garou Phantom," she stated, twirling a finger in the air. "And this time, there's no escaping your execution. We've gotten stronger."

A tree root shot from the ground, wrapping around Liz's ankle. She attempts to pull her leg free were in vain and she finally pulled Patty out, tossing her into the air. "Switch!"

The older Thompson sister then transformed into a pistol and Patty caught her midair before aiming at the vine that was shooting upward from the ground at them.

"What kind of magic is that?" asked Cosmos, studying the pair curiously.

"You don't answer our questions, so we don't owe you any answers either," Liz pointed out as Patty aimed her at Cosmos.

"Now die," Patty grinned as she pulled the trigger. The girl put up a shield of vines, blocking their attack.

"Sis!"

"Gotcha." The girls switched midair, Liz returning to human form as Patty turned to a weapon. If they timed it right, they would be above the vine wall and able to get a good shot at Cosmos.

"Damn her," Liz cursed, seeing that the girl had disappeared from behind the wall.

"Well, you didn't think I'd be stupid enough to just stand there, did you?" asked a light voice from a tree branch behind Liz? "Time to die, pretty girl."

Looking down, Liz saw that a carnivorous plant was below her, petals open and waiting. There was no way to avoid it.

"Patty, go find Kid!" she shouted, tossing Patty's pistol form through the air as far as she could.

"Big sister!" cried Patty's already distant voice. "Liz! No!"

"Don't you dare leave her because she's asymmetrical to use without me, Kid," Liz whispered as she fell into the plant. "Take care of my sister." And so, the petals closed around her, enveloping her in darkness.

"Tsubaki, do you hear that? Sounds like there's a fight going on up ahead!" Black Star commented eagerly as he perched on a tree branch.

"Yes, I can sense Kid-kun's soul up ahead. It looks like he's fighting...a witch," Tsubaki said. "Liz and Patty don't seem to be with him, but their souls don't seem too far away."

"Alright! The real show is about to begin!" exclaimed the assassin. "Tsubaki, chain scythe mode. I'm getting you a Witch's soul on this remedial lesson!"

"Right," his Weapon nodded. "Let's do our best."

Before the pair could move, Patty Thompson came crashing down on top of them sending them all crashing to the ground.

"Oops, bad time to transform," she giggled, jumping to her feet.

"What's the big deal, Patty?" grumbled Black Star. "you ruined my grand entrance!"

"Sorry, sorry! Black Star! Tsubaki-chan," she smiled brightly. "Big sis is in trouble! She got swallowed up by a giant plant. Please go help her."

"What? First giant monkeys and now a giant plant? Isn't there a real person I can fight around here?" Black Star demanded.

"Kid can take care of himself for now. We should go help Liz," said Tsubaki in an attempt to refocus her partner.

"Alright then," grinned the assassin as Tsubaki transformed into a chain scythe. "Let's go kick some plant butt!"

"I'll go see if I can help Kid," said Patty, holding up Kid's flying skateboard before running toward the clearing where her technician was fighting a battle of his own against the paper magic user, Kamika.

"So you're a shinigami, are you?" asked Kamika, studying Kid curiously. "Well, as executioners, we should be serving you, however, as enemies of Fairy Tail, I suppose we'll have to kill you." With a devious grin, she unleashed her Violet Dance paper blizzard.

Not knowing of its immobilizing effects, Kid only dodged a few, but got caught by the rest.

"I...can't move," he said, trying to shake the paper off of himself.

"Now, burn in my paper flames and return to the underworld," said Kamika, unleashing her Red Dance blizzard.

"Thanks for the snack," shouted a familiar voice as Natsu Dragneel stepped in front of Kid, swallowing the paper flames, coughing afterward. "Damn, that's nasty. I thought you guys gave up on fighting us."

"We knew that with our current level of magic, we couldn't beat you, but now, we've improved and it's time to finally execute you for your sins."

"Here we go with that again," groaned Natsu. "Patty, hurry up and get that paper off him, would you?"

"Working on it," replied the younger Thompson sister as she pulled the last of the purple paper off of Kid who was now able to move.

"Natsu, who are these people?" asked Kid. "And why are they so against Fairy Tail?"

"Beats me," shrugged the dragon slayer. "We've got a lot of people holding grudges against us, so I kinda lost count."

_This guy reminds me of Black Star for some reason._.. thought Kid. "Hey, Patty. Where's Liz?"

"She got swallowed by a giant plant, but Black Star is on his way to help her," the girl replied cheerily. "And Erza's fighting a guy with giant scythes."

"If only Maka were here," chuckled Kid. "That'd be right down her alley. Natsu, we're going to go get Liz. Can you handle her?"

"I'm guessing I already beat her once so I should be able to do it again," he replied with a thumbs up.

"You really don't remember who we are, do you?" sighed Kamika.

"No... sorry. Not a clue. But whoever you are, you're messing with the wrong guild, lady," Natsu added, his fists flaming up.

"Be careful, Natsu!" shouted Patty as she and her Technician ran off to find her sister.

Meanwhile, Black Star threw Tsubaki's shuriken form at the vines that were shooting toward him.

"Black Star, we need a plan," Tsubaki reminded her Meister as the shuriken returned to his hand.

"When has a plan ever worked for us?" laughed Black Star, dodging a bomb seed attack. "Still, our top priority should be saving Liz. Who knows if that plant's digested her already or not."

"Agreed."

"This'll have to be quick then," said the assassin. "Go smoke bomb mode, Tsubaki."

"Gotcha!"

Once the smoke went up, Black Star kicked into Speed Star gear and used Tsubaki's ninja sword mode to cut open the plant where Liz was trapped. She fell into his arms, unconscious.

"What now?" asked Tsubaki. The smoke was already beginning to clear and the fight would soon be in full swing again.

"A big man like me can't run away from a fight," Black Star stated bluntly, propping Liz's body against a tree. "Let's finish this quick so we can get her to a hospital or something."

"Someone's a little confident," commented Cosmos, perched on a tree branch.

"Tsubaki."

"Right," the Weapon acknowledged, turning into a kusarigama. "Let's go; Soul Resonance!"

Cosmos watched curiously, oblivious to what sort of spell they might be using.

Meanwhile, Tsubaki's chain was forming a star, their resonance acting as a shield as Black Star flew straight at the shocked Wizard. Before Cosmos had time to react, Black Star had appeared behind her, placing his palm between her shoulder blades.

"Sorry about this, but you shouldn't have attacked my friend," he said in a low voice, shooting his Soul Wavelength into her body. "Black Star, big wave!"

The girl fell, paralyzed, to the ground as Tsubaki transformed back into her human form and proceeded to make sure she was okay.

"She's fine," her Technician assured her, his hands behind his head in a relaxed manner. "A big man like me wouldn't put everything into one attack against an opponent who was so much weaker."

"That's a relief," sighed Tsubaki. "I was worried you'd go overboard again. Plus, we need to know why we were sensing a Witch's soul inside of her."

Black Star simply waved a dismissing hand in the air and went to pick up Liz. "Well, I think Kid's missing one of his Weapons right now. Knowing that OCD bastard, he probably refuses to use Patty because she's not balanced without Liz. Or something stupid like that."

"I don't think Liz can fight right now," said Tsubaki, gazing at her friend worriedly. "Her soul wavelength is weak."

Her Technician just gave her a big smile and started walking in the direction Patty had gone. "Yeah, but I bet they'd be glad to know she's okay."

...

"What's the matter, Maka?" asked Gray, giving the girl a concerned look. "Is everything alright?"

"I don't know," she replied, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. By then, they were on the train back to Magnolia, having finished the job and gotten the reward in a few hours. "I just have an uneasy feeling... Like the others are in trouble."

Lucy and Soul had gone to the food car to get something to eat, leaving only Gray and Maka to guard their belongings. The Ice Wizard couldn't help but notice how cute she was, despite the fact that she was a bit beat up from the fight and had a worried expression on her face, she was adorable.

"That idiot Natsu always finds a way to get into some sort of trouble," Gray told her. "But he always manages to get himself and everyone safely home at the end of the day, so I wouldn't worry."

She met his eyes for a moment before turning to look out the window. "Black Star has the same habit, minus the getting-everyone-home-safely part," she told him with a small smile. "Would you happen to know where they went on their job?"

Gray blinked. "You don't plan on following them, do you?"

Maka shook her head quickly. "Um, no! I was just wondering if it was far away or not."

"I heard them say it was all the way up in the mountains, not too far from Magnolia," shrugged Gray, unconsciously taking off his shirt. "They've got Erza and a Shinigami, so I doubt there's anything to worry about."

"Okay... But why are you taking off your clothes?" asked the scythe Technician, feeling heat rising to her cheeks.

Gray blushed bright red and immediately pulled his shirt back on. "Sorry. Force of habit."

A few seats away, Lucy had a hard time holding in her laughter. "Those two are so cute!"

"This isn't cool," grumbled Soul, eating a piece of cake. "What's the point of hiding?"

"Shush and eat your cake," snapped Lucy. "And the _point_ is so we can give them some time alone without missing any of the action."

"I'll seriously never understand women," sighed Soul, pausing his eating. "But Maka's hunches are usually right. Maybe we should go check it out."

"Have some confidence in your friends," said Lucy. "Plus, they've got two of Fairy Tail's strongest Wizards, a Shinigami, and an assassin. I think they'll manage."

Soul just looked at her for a second before continuing to eat. "Whatever."_  
_

After about another twenty minutes on the train, they finally reached Magnolia. As the four Fairy Tail members got off the train, Maka stopped in her tracks.

"What is it?" Soul asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's Kid and Black Star," she replied. "I can sense their souls not too far away. Erza and Natsu are there too, but I can also sense six Witches' souls surrounding them. I can't sense Liz anywhere, though."

"You can tel all that from here?" asked Lucy, incredulously.

"Witches?" Gray inquired.

"Yeah. They have very similar souls to Mages, except they're filled with evil and hatred."

"How far are they?" asked Soul.

"Not too far," she replied. "But we have to go. Now."

She turned and began running toward the forest before Gray placed a hand on her shoulder. "Maybe we should take a Magic Mobile."

"A what?"

"It's like a car powered by a Wizard's magical energy. Come on," he said, beckoning them towards one that was parked outside the train station.

"Hold on, you guys," said Maka as she took a seat next to Gray who was sliding on the bracelet and starting the car. "We'll be there soon."


	5. Chapter 5

"Dammit, I still can't get a good fight after all this?" Black Star whined as Liz stirred on his shoulder.

Tsubaki was half carrying, half dragging the girl Kamika a few paces behind him.  
"Maybe one of the others could use our help," she pointed out. "After we find Kid, we can go help someone out."

"That totally blows," the assassin sighed before snapping his head quickly to the right and jumping out of the way as acid hit the ground where he was standing just seconds ago.

"Tsubaki," ordered Black Star, setting Liz down nearby. "Go ninja sword mode."

"Right," she nodded, setting Kamika down and transforming.

A large man who towered a good two feet above Black Star stepped into view. Dressed in a sleeveless jacket with fur around the neck and black trousers, the man was most noticeable for the soda bottle kept between his teeth at all times. He was Neppa of the former Garou Knights used Acid Magic to carry out his executions.

"Oh, looks like a real opponent has finally shown up," said Black Star with a dark smile spreading across his face. "It's about time for some real action."

"You two must be members of Fairy Tail as well," the man stated.

Black Star turned and showed the Fairy Tail emblem on his left shoulder. "Damn right I am. I don't care who you are, but I won't let you people get away with hurting my friends."

He ran at Neppa, dodging two small acid cannonballs before telling Tsubaki to transform into a shuriken and throwing her at Neppa's belly. Before it could get to him, he blew acid towards Tsubaki whose soul flinched, preparing for impact.

"Smoke bomb mode!" ordered her Meister, and she did as she was told with relief as Black Star picked her up and sprung onto a tree branch for coverage.

"We can't attack him from long distances. He'll just deflect it with acid. We could try the Shadow Star," Tsubaki suggested, still in her Weapon form.

"You know I can't do that. A big man like me couldn't put your life at risk like that," her Meister replied, making her smile.

"Well, how about the duplicating decoy move?" she asked.

"Sounds like a plan," the assassin grinned, leaping out of the tree. "Let's go."

He flipped midair to avoid a ball of acid before moving to create decoys of himself around the entire clearing, all of them posed on defense. Even if the guy could spout a river of acid, he couldn't get the all of them at once without completely flooding the clearing, dissolving himself with them.

Just as Black Star reached him, he turned and landed a punch in the boy's face, sending him flying backwards before he regained his balance and landed nimbly on a tree branch.

"You won't be able to get me that easily, boy," Neppa chuckled.

"Damn," Black Star cursed, his grip on his Weapon tightening. "How do we kill this guy? It'd be nice to have the Witch Hunter skill right now."

As if on cue, a brilliant light lit up the clearing and Maka Albarn shot through the trees, her magic scythe, Soul Eater glowing as they resonated souls, creating the specialized technique Maka had inherited from her mother: The Anti-Magic Wavelength.

The Acid Wizard hardly knew what hit him before he was unconscious on the ground after a few more hits from Maka.

"Seriously, Maka?" Black Star demanded angrily. "Do you always have to steal my show? What the hell?"

"Black Star, please calm down," Tsubaki pleaded.

"We had it completely under control," the boy insisted, glaring at his friend.

"It didn't really look like it," Maka sighed, walking over to Liz who was drowsily waking up. "In any case, we've got to go find the others. Maybe they need help."

"These guys aren't that much compared to the witches we have to deal with back home," said Black Star, folding his hands lazily behind his head.

"I know it seems that way, but let's keep our guard up anyway," Maka told him sternly.

Before Black Star could come with a witty comeback to annoy the girl, Kid and Patty burst into the clearing, running full speed towards Liz.

"Liz, are you alright?" Kid asked.

"Sis! Are you okay? Did you get digested by the mean plant?" Patty asked, hugging her older sister.

"I'm fine," Liz coughed. "I think Black Star got me out just in time."

"Can you walk?" Kid questioned, moving to help her to her feet.

"Yeah, I think so," his Weapon replied, leaning on her Meister for support. "Let's go find everyone else."

"We should go back and see if Natsu's doing okay," Patty said. "Let's go!"

"Wait, you guys, there's only two Witchs' soul left," Maka interjected. "One of them is fighting Erza and..." She looked up and pointed toward the sky. "The other's right there!"

"I got this!" exclaimed Black Star, springing off a tree into the air.

Sighing, Tsubaki transformed into her Enchanted Sword mode, her Meister catching her midair.

"Alright, let's go, Soul Resonance!" Black Star commanded. "Let's get this over quick."

As they shot through the air, the two synchronized their Soul Wavelengths and moved to attack as one, stopping when they heard a scream from the ground.

Their teammates had scattered onto trees as hot lava had appeared on the ground.

"What the hell?" Black Star muttered as he flipped midair to avoid a swing from the wizard. The guy looked more like a fisherman than a magic user.

With a hand gesture, the man smiled as Black Star was pulled down towards the lava with his gravity effect magic. Luckily, the assassin landed on a piece of rock and sprang back into the air.

"Fool-tai," the Wizard chuckled as he repeated the gesture he did before and sent Black Star plummeting towards the lava.

"Oh no, not another Excalibur," the boy grimaced.

"Black Star, he seems pretty powerful. We should try link resonance," Maka shouted from a nearby tree which was also beginning to sink into the lava.

"I can handle this on my own, okay, Maka?" he snapped, irritated. "Just sit back and watch the show."

"Black Star, you idiot, this is no time for your giant ego to be getting in the way!" Soul shouted, still in his scythe form tucked under Maka's arm.

Ignoring them, Black Star asked his Weapon to go ninja sword mode, using a modified version of the Speed Star technique. As expected, the fisherman wizard, Uosuke couldn't seem to keep up and his gravity attacks missed. Once directly behind him, Black Star hit the man with as much of his soul's energy as he could channel, sending Uosuke plummeting towards the lava.

"How does it feel?" Black Star taunted, diving downward after him and hooking the Wizard upward with a strong kick in the stomach.

"You should stop before you make me angry-tai!" Uosuke stated as he landed back on his feet.

"No way. He took a blast of Black Star's Soul Force like it was nothing," Kid gaped. "And with Liz in this condition..."

"Forget my condition, Kid," the girl said. "You have to take that guy down. As your Weapon, I'm willing to fight alongside you until my last breath. So let's do it."

"But sis, if you use your energy to transform..." Patty warned, giving Liz a worried look.

"Don't worry about me! We've got to take that weirdo down," the girl responded, transforming into a pistol. "Let's give this everything we've got."

"Patty, transform," Kid commanded in a strained voice. Although worried about Liz's safety, he realized she was right.

Reluctantly, Patty complied and the trio jumped onto the ground, preparing for Soul Resonance. Within seconds, Kid had his Death Cannon aimed straight at Uosuke and ready to fire.

"Firing!" Patty announced as the rays of brilliant light shot from the two barrels. Before the Wizard could get out of the way, Black Star knocked him back in range with a grim expression.

"I hate to not be the one to take you down, but what can you do?" the blue haired assassin grinned as the light enveloped Uosuke.

"Just in time," Maka smiled as she and Soul landed on the now solid ground. "Looks like Erza defeated her opponent just now too."

Having gathered their enemies and tied them up, everyone met up in the large clearing where the Garou Phantoms had first appeared.

"Well done," Erza commented as Black Star and Soul set Uosuke and Cosmos down. "And you managed to defeat them without magic, too."

"It's what we're trained to do," Maka stated. "Plus, it's good practice for our final test."

"Final test?" Natsu questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"In order to turn a Magic Weapon into one of Lord Death's personal weapons or a Deathscythe, the Weapon must consume 99 Kishin eggs, evil souls, and 1 Witch's soul," explained Death the Kid.

"Do you have any idea why their souls resemble those of Witches?" Tsubaki asked.

"Well, because they're tainted with hatred and malice," Maka replied. "And they have the lives of many people on their hands."

"Oh! I remember now. These guys were executioners we ran into at the royal palace once," Natsu exclaimed.

"So what do we do with them?" asked Soul. "I don't suppone I can follow the usual protocol and eat their souls."

Lucy gave him a shocked and slightly disgusted look, but the scythe just smiled. "What? They're tastier than you'd think. Plus, I haven't eaten in a long time."

"What are you talking about? You just had cake not over an hour ago!" the blonde protested.

"I'm with him! Where's the snack bar?" asked Natsu.

"To answer your question," Erza interjected. "I'll take them to the magic council and they'll decide how to deal with them. Meanwhile, you all head back to the guild."

"Hey, can we not take the train this time?" Natsu pleaded. "I'll walk, if that's what it takes."

"Since it's so close, I could fly you back," chirped Happy.

"I should probably take the magic mobile back," Gray stated.

"If anyone wants a ride, I found a motorcycle in town," Soul announced.

"Isn't that stealing?" Lucy demanded.

"Well, it was pretty hard to tell whether or not the person was trying to give it away since it had the keys in it. If I hadn't taken it, somebody would've. So you want a ride or what?"

Blushing lightly, the girl nodded and followed Soul to where he'd parked the bike. Meanwhile, Maka rode with Gray on the Magic Mobile and Black Star and Tsubaki were already gone.

"It sure was an eventful first day for you guys, huh?" Gray grinned as he started the Magic Mobile.

Maka nodded, returning the smile. "Our kind of day."

**A/N: First action chapter. The purpose was mainly to kind of show everyone's fighting style, the fighting abilities of the DWMA students, how they approached situations, and a few other explanatory reasons. The next few are going to get funnier and more fluffy, so brace yourselves!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Um, hey, Soul?" Lucy squeaked as she clung on to the Magic Weapon for dear life, burying her face in his back.

"Yeah?" Soul Eater replied, trying to keep in his laughter.

"Could you maybe not go so fast? You're going to get us killed!" the Wizard cried as she squeezed her eyes shut.

He didn't answer, just swerved the bike around another sharp corner and hit the brakes, coming to a rather abrupt stop in front of the Fairy Tail guild hall.

"Hey, you still alive back there?" he asked, blushing slightly as he realized how tightly she was holding onto him.

"Yeah... Barely..." Lucy said, slowly opening her eyes and unraveling her arms from around his waist. Wow, that was kind of embarrassing.

"Doesn't look like anyone's here," Soul stated. "Did they all go home already?"

Lucy glanced over at the guild hall and realized that he was right. All the lights were off and it seemed like no one was present inside the the building. Not even Cana, who was usually there until around one in the morning drinking.

"Where's everyone else?" Lucy asked. "Shouldn't they have gotten here by now?"

A grin spread across Soul's face as he sensed his Meister's soul nearby at a small restaurant they'd passed down the street.

"Uh, what's with the creepy smile?" Lucy questioned.

"Well, looks like you were right about those two. It looks like Maka actually got a date," Soul replied. The thought of his Meister going out with someone was pretty weird, with her annoying tendencies and bossiness. "But we are not stalking them again."

"Really? Gray and Maka?" the girl squealed excitedly. "I think if it's her, she might be able to handle Juvia's wrath."

"Who?"

"Gray's biggest fangirl," giggled Lucy. "Hey, you said you were hungry right? So...you want to go grab something to eat at this steamed buns place a few blocks away?"

Grinning widely, Soul held out his arm. "Only if you'll accompany me, Miss Lucy."

Blushing, she slid her arm through his and they walked down the street together towards the shop.

After getting their food, the two sat on the bridge near Lucy's house, looking over the serene river.

"So how exactly did you end up joining a magic guild?" Soul asked out of nowhere.

The Celestial Wizard hesitated before deciding that it wouldn't hurt to tell him. "It's kind of a long story. I'll tell you if you promise not to fall asleep."

"Sure. A cool guy like me wouldn't fall asleep in the middle of a story," he replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"Okay. Well, it started back a few months ago..."

And so, she confessed everything to him: How she'd ran away from home aspiring to become a Wizard. How she'd met Natsu and Happy while in Hargeon and bought them a meal for saving her from a faux fire wizard who turned out to be claiming to be Natsu (aka Salamander). Even about how her father had hired Phantom Lord to bring her back.

Soul listened intently to the whole thing, nodding when Lucy asked for agreement. When she finally finished, she met his gaze, her eyes glimmering with tears.

"And then he died..." she whispered. "I...I never even got to say goodbye."

Taken aback and unsure what to do, Soul hesitantly pulled her close and let her cry on his shoulder. It was uncanny how similarly related their backgrounds seemed to be.

"How about you?" she sniffled, pulling back to look at him. "How did you end up going to the DWMA?"

That was a question Soul dreaded to hear from anyone. Even when Maka asked him about his family, he'd shrug it off and tell her it wasn't cool to dig up the past. But here this girl was, her blonde hair catching the light of the moon and her brown eyes sparkling with tears, having told him most of her life's story.

With a heavy sigh, he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. "Uh. It's a pretty long story."

"Well, you listened to mine," the girl urged him. "So let's hear it. How did Mr. Cool Guy end up joining the DWMA?"

He cocked an eyebrow at the nickname but decided he'd tell her anyway. Why? He couldn't answer that question himself. He usually didn't go for girls like her. They were too loud and gushy, he found it kind of uncool. Maybe it was because his story wasn't that different from hers.

Lucy listened in silence the whole time, only nodding her head once in a while, but what Soul was saying really struck her. So she wasn't the only one who'd been fed up with the rich, over-expectant lifestyle.

"You're partners with Maka, right? How did that happen?" she asked.

"That's a pretty easy one. She asked and I said OK," he shrugged. "Nothing fancy to it."

"Wow... The DWMA sounds pretty amazing," Lucy mused.

"It's really cool. You're welcome to come visit anytime."

Giving him a sincere smile, Lucy got to her feet and dusted herself off. "Well, how about we go see how Maka and Gray's date is going?"

"Didn't I say no stalking?" Soul groaned.

"Please? Aren't you curious?"

"Not really." But his expression betrayed him. He'd never thought Maka was the very romantic type, but maybe she was just that way around him.

"Oh, come on!" she said, pulling him up. "You know you want to."

"Fine. Just for a little while, okay?"

Lucy nodded, dragging him down the street to the restaurant Gray Fullbuster and Maka Albarn were currently dining at.

"Oh! So that's where you got the habit of taking off your clothes all the time?" Maka giggled.

"Yeah. It's a weird story, but that's how it happened," Gray replied with a sheepish smile.

"You say you lived with your master through a period of your childhood, but what about your parents?" The girl immediately wished she hadn't said anything because Gray's eyes turned downcast as he shifted uncomfortably.

"They got killed by a demon when I was young. It rampaged through my entire village, and from what Lyon and my master told me, I was the only survivor they found," he stated. "I trained to become an Ice Wizard to take down the demon that killed my parents and everyone else I cared about, but in the end... In the end, I just got Ur and Lyon in trouble."

Maka gazed at him with sad eyes and placed her hand gently over his. "Don't blame yourself. You can't turn back time, but you _can _get stronger."

"I know," he responded with a smile. "That's why I joined Fairy Tail."

Soul had to hold his hand over Lucy's mouth to keep her from squealing as they watched from behind a fake plant placed in the restaurant.

"It wouldn't be cool if they saw us spying on them," Soul told her.

"Yeah, but they're so cute!" she whispered loudly.

A shadow was cast over them and they looked up to see Maka and Gray standing behind them with their arms crossed.

"Oh crap," Soul Eater grumbled as his Meister glowered at him. "I forgot she could see souls..."

"Yeah. Especially since yours is so familiar," she snapped, flicking the back of his head. "Why are you spying on us?"

"Don't be mad at him," Lucy interjected. "It was my idea. I was curious."

"About what?" Gray asked coolly, raising an eyebrow.

"You two. And whether you'd wreck it or not," Lucy huffed.

"Wreck it? How?"

"Well, you are quite the ladies man, Gray. You're up there on the popularity scale with Loke," his friend giggled.

"Shut up. It's not like I ask for the attention. I hardly notice anyway," he grumbled.

"Jeez, Maka. I never knew you had a sensitive side," the scythe teased his Meister, which earned him a scathing look.

"Shut up, Soul. I could say the same to you," she snapped.

"In any case, since you guys are here, you want to stay and eat with us?" Gray offered.

"Yeah, I'd rather not be seen here with a streaker," replied Lucy. "Besides, we already ate."

Noticing Maka and Gray glancing at each other with smiles spreading across their faces, Soul sighed. This situation wasn't really what he'd call cool. He found himself wondering where Black Star and Tsubaki had ended up. Apparently, Maka had the same idea and her mouth formed an O as she looked up and down the street as if searching for something.

"Crap... This won't be good," Soul sighed as his Meister grabbed his wrist and dragged him down the cobblestone street.

"We'll be right back! We just have to go check on something!" Maka called back to Gray and Lucy, who were thoroughly confused.

Soul, who was being pulled by the arm, didn't protest. But still, he was sure sick of being dragged around by girls and spying on people.


End file.
